The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has made unprecedented changes to Oscars eligibility rules because of theater closings and film-festival cancellations due to the coronavirus pandemic — and combined the two sound categories into a single one.

On Tuesday morning, the AMPAS Board of Governors voted to approve a new rule stipulating that, for the first time, films that premiere on VOD or streaming services can still qualify for Oscar consideration if their planned theatrical releases were canceled because of theater closings.

Those films must be made available to Academy members on the secure AMPAS screening platform and must also meet other eligibility requirements.

The rule will end on a to-be-determined date after theaters in Los Angeles reopen. In addition, the rule that films must have qualifying runs in Los Angeles County will be changed to allow theatrical runs in New York City, Chicago, Miami, Atlanta and the Bay Area in Northern California to qualify films as well.

Films that were made available via a canceled film festival’s online platform will also be allowed to qualify, providing they show proof of inclusion in the festival.

In a statement accompanying the press release that announced the changes, Academy President David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson said, “The Academy firmly believes there is no greater way to experience the magic of movies than to see them in a theater. Our commitment to that is unchanged and unwavering. Nonetheless, the historically tragic COVID-19 pandemic necessitates this temporary exception to our awards eligibility rules. The Academy supports our members and colleagues during this time of uncertainty. We recognize the importance of their work being seen and also celebrated, especially now, when audiences appreciate movies more than ever.”

In an interview Tuesday, Hudson insisted the streaming rule change would “absolutely not” be permanent. “We want to be clear that the theatrical experience is the Academy’s priority and always will be,” Hudson said. “But we understand that at this time it’s just not possible for filmmakers, so we had to make exceptions.”

Additional changes not related to the pandemic include combining the two sound categories, Best Sound Mixing and Best Sound Editing, into a single Best Achievement in Sound category. This move was made with the cooperation of the Academy’s Sound Branch, which has been studying the feasibility of combining the categories for a number of years.

Up to six statuettes may be awarded in the new category, the largest number for any Oscars category. This makes the sound categories the first Oscar categories to be eliminated since 1998, when the Best Original Musical or Comedy Score and Best Original Dramatic Score categories were combined into Best Original Score after a four-year run as separate categories.

In the Music (Original Score) category, an original score is now defined as consisting of at least 60% original music. For sequels and franchise films, scores must consist of 80% new material to qualify.

The procedure has also changed in the first phase of voting in the Academy’s Best International Feature Film category. Previously, voting was open only to members who see a certain number of qualifying films in a theater — but starting this year, all the eligible films will be made available on the members’ streaming platform, and all voting members of the Academy will be eligible as long as they see a minimum number of films.

On the campaign front, the Academy also announced that 2020 will be the last year in which DVD screeners can be mailed to voters. The move is part of the Academy’s sustainability program and will move screening online rather than with physical media.

The Board of Governors held a virtual meeting on Tuesday to discuss the changes. The April meeting is one at which the board always considers Academy Awards rule changes, but this year’s discussion was more complicated and more crucial because many of the traditional routes to Oscars qualifying have been shut down since early March.

The Academy’s Board of Governors has approved rules and campaign regulations for the 93rd Academy Awards®.

The devastating COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of all Los Angeles County movie theaters as of Monday, March 16, 2020. Current Academy Awards rules (under Rule Two, Eligibility) require that a film be shown in a commercial motion picture theater in Los Angeles County for a theatrical qualifying run of at least seven consecutive days, during which period screenings must occur at least three times daily. Until further notice, and for the 93rd Awards year only, films that had a previously planned theatrical release but are initially made available on a commercial streaming or VOD service may qualify in the Best Picture, general entry and specialty categories for the 93rd Academy Awards under these provisions:

The film must be made available on the secure Academy Screening Room member-only streaming site within 60 days of the film’s streaming or VOD release;

The film must meet all other eligibility requirements.

On a date to be determined by the Academy, and when theaters reopen in accordance with federal, state and local specified guidelines and criteria, this rules exemption will no longer apply. All films released thereafter will be expected to comply with the standard Academy theatrical qualifying requirements.

“The Academy firmly believes there is no greater way to experience the magic of movies than to see them in a theater. Our commitment to that is unchanged and unwavering. Nonetheless, the historically tragic COVID-19 pandemic necessitates this temporary exception to our awards eligibility rules. The Academy supports our members and colleagues during this time of uncertainty. We recognize the importance of their work being seen and also celebrated, especially now, when audiences appreciate movies more than ever,” said Academy President David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson.

For films to more easily meet theatrical exhibition requirements when theaters reopen, the Academy also will expand the number of qualifying theaters beyond Los Angeles County to include venues in additional U.S. metropolitan areas: the City of New York; the Bay Area; Chicago, Illinois; Miami, Florida; and Atlanta, Georgia. The Awards and Events Committee will evaluate all matters of rules and eligibility.

Film festivals that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic may provide films online through either a transactional pay wall or password-protected entry, which will not affect the films’ eligibility for future Academy Awards qualification. The Academy will allow an exemption for those films that are released online through an impacted festival’s online platform, provided that proof of inclusion in the festival is submitted. With these provisions, films will be expected to comply with all other eligibility requirements for the 93rd Academy Awards.

The Board of Governors also announced rules changes in the Sound, Music and International Feature Film categories.

• The two Sound categories, Sound Mixing and Sound Editing, have been combined into one award for best achievement in Sound that emphasizes the team effort. The number of Oscar® statuettes remains the same; up to six statuettes may be awarded. Eligible recipients may include one production sound mixer, two supervising sound editors and three rerecording mixers.

• In the Music (Original Score) category, for a score to be eligible, it must comprise a minimum of 60% original music. Additionally, for sequels and franchise films, a score must have a minimum of 80% new music.

• In a procedural change in the International Feature Film category, all eligible Academy members will now be invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting. For the first time, film submissions will be made available through the Academy Screening Room streaming platform to those members who opt-in. These members of the International Feature Film Preliminary Voting committee must meet a minimum viewing requirement in order to be eligible to vote in the category.

The following campaign regulations were also approved:

• The regulation prohibiting quotes or comments by Academy members not directly associated with the film in any form of advertising in any medium, including online and social media, was eliminated. Academy governors and Awards and Events Committee members, however, are still prohibited from participating in such activity.

• All screeners will be required to include closed captioning.

• After nominations, film companies will be allowed to send mailings announcing the availability of song and bake-off materials on the Academy’s streaming platform.

• As part of the Academy’s sustainability effort, the 93rd Awards season will be the final year DVD screeners will be allowed to be distributed; these mailings will be discontinued starting in 2021 for the 94th Academy Awards. Access to the Academy Screening Room will continue to be made available for all eligible releases. The distribution of physical music CDs, screenplays and hardcopy mailings, including but not limited to paper invites and screening schedules, will also be discontinued next year. Digital links to materials will be permitted.

Due to the shifting landscape surrounding the global pandemic caused by COVID-19, all matters of rules and eligibility for the 93rd Academy Awards are subject to change based on national guidelines, state-mandated government orders and Academy-determined best practices.

Additional adjustments to Academy rules, eligibility requirements and scheduling may be required. As previously announced, the 93rd Oscars telecast is scheduled to air Sunday, February 28, 2021, on ABC. Any updated information about the show will be shared at a later time.

For the complete 93rd Academy Awards rules, visit oscars.org/rules.

Stars Who Have Tested Positive for Coronavirus (Photos)

As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to spread, even the Hollywood community has been affected. From actors to executives, here is a list of confirmed celebrity coronavirus cases.

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Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson announced they both tested positive for the coronavirus in Australia while filming their Elvis Presley biopic. The couple isolated themselves and are keeping their spirits up, sharing their experience on Instagram.

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Former Bond Girl Olga Kurylenko posted on Instagram Sunday that she was self-quarantining after testing positive for the coronavirus. She appeared in "Quantum of Solace" opposite Daniel Craig in 2008 and in the sci-fi movie "Oblivion."

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Idris Elba posted a video on Twitter Monday saying that he tested positive for the coronavirus. The British actor said he is asymptomatic and encourages people to stay pragmatic.

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Lucian Grainge, longtime chairman and CEO of Universal Music Group, tested positive for the coronavirus and has been hospitalized at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. On April 6, he sent a memo to staff saying he was going to make a full recovery.

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Kristofer Hivju posted on Instagram Monday that he tested positive for the coronavirus. The "Game of Thrones" alum is set to star on season 2 of Netflix's "The Witcher."

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Rachel Matthews, the voice of Honeymaren in "Frozen II" and an actress known for "Looking for Alaska" and "Happy Death Day 2 You," said in a series of posts on her Instagram story (via Page Six) that she tested positive for the coronavirus. Matthews described her symptoms over the course of a week in her posts and added that she found tests for the virus "INSANELY hard to come by."

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Kevin Durant, a two-time NBA Finals MVP and currently a player for the Brooklyn Nets, was one of four players who tested positive for the coronavirus, according to The Athletic. "Everyone be careful, take care of yourself and quarantine. We're going to get through this," he told The Athletic.

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Actor Daniel Dae Kim announced on Instagram Thursday that he has tested positive for the coronavirus. “For all those out there, especially teenagers and millennials who think this is not serious, please know that it is,” the former "Lost" and "Hawaii Five-0" star pleaded. He has since recovered from the virus.

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Prince Albert of Monaco is the first known head of state to contract the coronavirus.

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Sean Payton told ESPN he tested positive for the coronavirus. He is the first confirmed case in the NFL

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Colton Underwood, former star of "The Bachelor," revealed in a Twitter video that despite being 28-years-old and healthy, he still tested positive for the coronavirus.

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Andy Cohen, host of "Watch What Happens Live" on Bravo, announced he tested positive on March 20.

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Actress Debi Mazar ("Goodfellas," "Younger") announced on March 21 that she had tested positive for COVID-19. "Today my lungs are heavy, but I’m tough," she wrote. "I can breath, and I’m going to heal here, in my own home! My family is under quarantine for 14 days."

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Opera legend Placido Domingo announced on March 22 that he tested positive for COVID-19. "Together we can fight this virus and stop the current worldwide crisis, so we can hopefully return to our normal daily lives very soon," he wrote on Facebook.

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"Les Miserables" actor Aaron Tveit announced he tested positive for the virus in a lengthy Instagram post. "I consider myself extremely lucky that my symptoms have been very mild," he wrote.

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Sen. Rand Paul became the first U.S. senator to test positive for the virus Sunday.

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Harvey Weinstein has tested positive for the virus in prison, according to a report from the Niagara Gazette.

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"Game of Thrones" actress Indira Varma revealed she was sick with the virus last week.

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Daytime Emmy Award winner Greg Rikaart ("The Young and the Restless") announced on Instagram that he tested positive for the coronavirus. "Nice try coronavirus, but I have another 4-5 decades worth of experiences to have with these guys," he wrote, referring to his husband and son.

Prince Charles, the first in line to the British throne, has tested positive for the novel coronavirus but remains in "good health," his office announced on Wednesday.

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Jackson Browne, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, also announced that he has tested positive for the coronavirus. He is recuperating in his Los Angeles home.

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In a memo to staff Thursday, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell revealed he had tested positive for the coronavirus and "improving every day."

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Chef Floyd Cardoz died of coronavirus complications on March 25. He won the third season of "Top Chef Masters" and appeared in numerous other cooking programs. He was 59.

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Mark Blum, who starred in "Desperately Seeking Susan" and "You," died of coronavirus complications on March 26. He was 69.

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ESPN NBA analyst and reporter Doris Burke revealed Friday she tested positive for the coronavirus, and that it took eight days for her to get her results. Fortunately, she has been symptom-free.

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Chuck Billy, frontman for the thrash-metal band Testament, told Rolling Stone, "I had an achy body, headaches, coughing, tight chest, I lost my sense of smell and taste — the whole thing." A few days later, he and his wife Tiffany learned they had the coronavirus.

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Houston rapper Scarface revealed in a livestream with Geto Boys’ bandmate Willie D. that he tested positive for COVID-19 after having symptoms that began with the lack of taste and smell.

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Adam Schlesinger, the songwriter best known for his work with the rock band Fountains of Wayne and the TV show “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” has been hospitalized with coronavirus symptoms. Sadly, the 52-year-old rocker died on April 1.

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Chris Cuomo announced on March 31 he tested positive for the coronavirus. The anchor has been hosting the show from his basement. Cuomo also revealed shortly after his own diagnosis that his wife too tested positive.

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Tennis commentator Patrick McEnroe announced March 31 he tested positive for the coronavirus. The brother of John McEnroe says he quarantined himself in his basement and is "feeling fine."

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Eddie Large, one-half of the comedy duo Little and Large, contracting coronavirus while hospitalized for heart failure. Sadly, he died on April 2 at age 78.

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Jim Edmonds, MLB player turned "Real Housewives of Orange County" star, said he tested positive for both pneumonia and the coronavirus but is "completely symptom-free" now.

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Actress Ali Wentworth, who is married to ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos, revealed on Instagram she tested positive for the coronavirus and "has never been sicker." She is quarantined from her family.

"Love Song" singer and Broadway star of the musical "Waitress" Sara Bareilles revealed she had tested positive for the virus and is already feeling better, she said in an Instagram story Friday.

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CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin tested positive for coronavirus despite practicing social distancing. "I am okay," she posted on Instagram. "It came on suddenly yesterday afternoon. Chills, aches, fever. I’ve been social distancing. Doing ALL the things we’re being told to do. Still — it got me."

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Christopher Cross, the singer-songwriter best known for "Sailing," announced he tested positive for cornonavirus in a lengthy Instagram post. "Although I am fortunate enough to be cared for at home, this is possibly the worst illness I've ever had," he wrote.

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The pop singer Pink revealed on Twitter that she tested positive for coronavirus but said that after two weeks of self-isolating, she then tested negative for COVID-19 and had recovered. Pink then agreed to donate $1 million split among two different crisis relief funds.

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The singer and songwriter Marianne Faithfull, who came to fame as part of the 1960s British Invasion with her single "As Tears Go By," was hospitalized in London after testing positive for the coronavirus, her reps told Rolling Stone. On April 22, Faithfull's team revealed that after being hospitalized for the past 22 days, she was released from the hospital to recuperate in London. Her team also added that the hospital staff from the British NHS "without doubt, saved her life."

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Duran Duran singer John Taylor announced on Facebook that he had tested positive for coronavirus -- and fully recovered. "I want to let you know that it isn't always a killer, and we can and will beat this thing," he wrote.

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Reality TV star Todd Chrisley ("Chrisley Knows Best") revealed he tested positive for the coronavirus on his podcast. "It has been the sickest I have ever been on this earth," he said. "Hopefully, I will get better every day, but as of right now, folks, I still am not clicking on all cylinders."

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"Real Housewives of New Jersey" star Jennifer Aydin revealed she tested positive for the coronavirus after asking her husband -- a plastic surgeon -- to bring home a test. The reality TV star has been quarantining herself away from her five children.

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"Fox & Friends" weekend host Jedidiah Bila said on Instagram that she has been recovering from her coronavirus diagnosis while absent from the air. The former "View" host said she's "very much on the mend."

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Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds told his Instagram followers on April 10, which is also his birthday, that he and his family tested positive for COVID-19 but have since recovered. "It's an incredibly scaring thing to go through my friends," he wrote.

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Country music singer Sturgill Simpson posted a photo on Instagram On April 11 of him lying on a hospital bed, wearing a face mask. "After almost one month without any symptoms, I received a call from the Nashville CDC stating that my test resulted in a positive detection for Covid-19," he wrote.

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"Good Morning America" anchor George Stephanopoulos announced he tested positive for the coronavirus just a few days after his wife, Ali Wentworth, revealed her diagnosis. Fortunately, the tv host says he has been asymptomatic and is "feeling great."

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Wreckless Eric, the '70s pop rock star and singer of the track "Whole Wide World," revealed in a blog post on April 19 that he tested positive for coronavirus after weeks of experiencing symptoms but being unable to receive a test. "I haven’t actually been very well in the past three or four weeks - chest and rib pains, cough, low level fever, intermittent headaches - I was pretty sure it must be the virus though I was told the only way I could get confirmation of this was by presenting myself at the emergency room, death’s door, sick to the point of dying, ready to be hospitalised…No f---ing thank you." Wreckless Eric, real name Eric Goulden, revealed that though he tested positive his wife did not.

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CNN International anchor Richard Quest revealed via Twitter on April 20 that he "caught coronavirus. I am blessed in that I have few symptoms - just a cough."

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Broadway star Danny Burstein said in a video interview with "CBS This Morning" on April 21 that he had just been released from the hospital after a five-day stay. He told the morning show that he will "absolutely" return to the stage once he is healthy and theaters reopen.

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NFL Draft and College Football Analyst Todd McShay revealed on the day of the 2020 NFL Draft that he would not be able to work the gig this year because he is "home recovering from coronavirus." "I'll be back," he promised -- just not in time for this year's festivities.

“60 Minutes” host Lesley Stahl revealed on-air on May 3 that she had been diagnosed with the coronavirus and had made a full recovery after being hospitalized. In tribute to the doctors and nurses, she said, "We all owe them our gratitude, our admiration and, in some cases, our lives."

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Legendary Auburn football coach Pat Dye is "very weak" after combating COVID-19 and other medical conditions, TMZ reported on May 21. Sadly, he died June 1.

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Former New York Knicks star and current Georgetown University coach Patrick Ewing announced on May 22 that he had tested positive for the coronavirus. He said on Twitter, "This virus is serious and should not be taken lightly. I want to encourage everyone to stay safe and take care of yourselves and your loved ones."

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Neera Tanden, who the president of the liberal think tank Center for American Progress and a frequent guest on "Real Time With Bill Maher," MSNBC, CNN and Fox News, announced on Twitter on May 23 that she has the coronavirus. "I only went out for necessities and wore masks," she wrote. "This is obviously a very transmissible virus. People need to take a lot of care and the idea we can just reopen is very scary."

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Andrea Bocelli revealed in a Facebook post that he and members of his family had tested positive for COVID-19. He added that they had a "swift and full recovery" and that he later donated blood to coronavirus research.

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Tom Hanks, Idris Elba and Prince Charles have all come down with COVID-19

As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to spread, even the Hollywood community has been affected. From actors to executives, here is a list of confirmed celebrity coronavirus cases.

Steve Pond, awards editor at TheWrap, is also author of the L.A. Times bestseller The Big Show. He has been covering entertainment for more than two decades, and is the industry's most knowledgeable Academy Awards prognosticator.